Anna varsity student moves plea over scrapping of 2 courses

Anna varsity student moves plea over scrapping of 2 courses

Issue relates to differences in Union government’s insistence that the University follows only 49.5% reservation and not State’s 69% quota policy in admission

Published: 02nd February 2021 03:36 AM | Last Updated: 02nd February 2021 03:36 AM | A+A A-

By Express News Service

CHENNAI: A student of the Anna University has moved the Madras High Court on Monday challenging the decision of the premier University to scrap Biotechnology and Computational Biology M. Tech programmes for the academic year 2020-21.

The issue relates to differences in Central government’s insistence that the University follows only 49.5 per cent reservation and not the State’s 69 per cent quota policy in admission. During the hearing, advocate Saravanan Annadurai, representing the petitioner, made a mention seeking urgent hearing of the plea before Justice B Pugalendi.

According to the petitioner, R Chitra, the courses have been scrapped due to a difference of opinion between the University and the AICTE in following reservation in admission. The decision to scrap the course for the current academic year has left all applicants in a dire and dicey situation, she contended.

The students who have prepared hard for the course and taken the GAT-B examination are left to grapple with an empty future. It will not be out of place to point out that after the advent of the Covid-19, the demand for these courses had gone up, the petitioner said.

The Department of Biotechnology has followed 49.5 per cent reservation in all India admissions till last year, because it is a Central-sponsored course. Anna University is believed to have sought clarification from the State government over the reservation policy to be followed in admissions to these two programmes, said the petitioner.

The State directed the University to follow 69 per cent reservation, for which the department, which funds these courses, refused, and resulted in scrapping of the courses, said the petitioner.The matter was posted to be taken up on Tuesday.